Old Pulteney 2008 (Signatory) (55.5%)

An Old Pulteney single malt, selected and bottled by Signatory Vintage matured to 13 year old, from 2008, drawn from cask 8 and bottled at 55.5%. A release of 643 bottles. Built in 1826 in the fishing town of Wick, Caithness, Pulteney is the maritime malt of the far north. It is one of the last urban distilleries, set among the streets of Pulteneytown.

Distilled on Loch Hempriggs water in stills whose shape has not changed since the 1820s, the make was then laid down by the sea for its briny, honeyed style. An Oloroso sherry cask wrapped the malt in dried fruit and a nutty depth. Past a decade the honey and wax build, knitting with the coastal salt. The spirit takes colour and sweetness slowly in the cool far north. The cool, damp Caithness air gives a slow and even maturation. Closed when Wick went dry in 1930, the distillery did not run again until 1951.

At 55.5%, undiluted, it is bold and waxy. The Oloroso brings salted dried fruit, fig and walnut, and sea salt and a coastal tang meet a touch of oak sweetness underneath. The mouthfeel is oily, the honey carried on a waxy body. The finish is deep, oily and maritime. This is Old Pulteney's classic maritime character.